Peer support

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Peer support is a support initiative, normally within a school or university, to help pupils deal with issues such as bullying, stress, or other problems that they may come across while at school.

Peer support normally consists of trained teenagers, and can take a number of forms, such as mentors, listening, or counseling.

Peer support is also used to refer to initiatives where colleagues, members of self help organisations and others meet as equals to give each other support on a reciprocal basis. Peer in this case is taken to imply that each person has no more expertise as a supporter than the other and the relationship is one of equality.

Peer Listening

This form of Peer support is the most common form, and the most widely used within Schools. Peer Supporters are trained, normally from within schools or universities, or sometimes by outside organistaions, such as Childline's CHIPS (Childline In Partnership With Schools) program, to be active "listeners". Within schools, peer-supporters are normally available at break or lunch times.

Peer Counseling

Less widely used, as this approach requires more training. Peer Supporters are required to act as counselers to the students. Some believe that this is not the most effective approach, as teenagers can often give wrong, or potentially harmful advice.

In co-counselling this problem does not arise as the person acting as counsellor has a limited role that specifically does not include giving advice.

Peer Mediation

Whereby incidents of bullying are overcome by bringing the victim and the bully together, under mediation by one of their peers.

Peer Support in Mental Health

Consumers of mental health programs grouping together and forming non profit organizations that serve to enhance the mental health of other consumers. See also Self-help, Person centered planning and Self-determination.

See also

• Social support

Key texts

Papers

Sharp, S., Sellars, S. and Cowie, H. (1995) Time to Listen: setting up a peer-counselling service to help tackle the problem of bullying. Pastoral Care, June 1995

Additional material

Papers

• support Google Scholar

External links

• Peer Support.org Training page
• The Institute for Recovery and Community Integration
• Web-Based Peer Support for Teens and College Students
• Power2u.org
• Co-Counselling International
• Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
• Testing the Efficacy of Peer Support for Recovery Management
• Mental Health On- line peer support Group
• Webcast that describes the evidence base for consumer-operated, delivered, and centered services